Fitch plans to downgrade 'Israel's' credit rating: Israeli media
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Fitch's comprehensive report is anticipated to be released within three weeks following the culmination of meetings between the agency and senior Israeli officials.
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This photo shows 1 State Street Plaza, home of Fitch Ratings, on Sunday, Oct. 9, 2011, in New York. (AP Photo/Henny Ray Abrams)
Following Moody's suit, US ratings agency Fitch's economic analysts have opted to lower "Israel's" credit rating given the current wartime conditions, unless persuaded otherwise in last-minute discussions with senior economic officials to delay the downgrade, the Israeli Ynet news website reported on Thursday.
In early February, Moody's downgraded "Israel's" credit rating due to the impact of the war in he Gaza Strip, lowering it by one notch from A1 to A2. It also lowered its outlook for "Israel's" debt to "negative" due to "the risk of an escalation" with Hezbollah.
In late October, Fitch declared that the A1 rating would be maintained for the time being but attached a negative outlook for the future, the website recalled.
Fitch's comprehensive report is anticipated to be released within three weeks following the culmination of meetings between the agency and senior Israeli officials, the Israeli news website indicated.
It revealed that Yali Rothenberg, "Israel's" General Accountant, arrived in London on Wednesday for discussions with the agency's economists to dissuade them from proceeding with the downgrade.
The website mentioned that Rothenberg is expected to outline to Fitch that within two weeks, the Israeli Knesset will approve a new budget for 2024, incorporating measures to curb the budget deficit this year and at the beginning of 202.
Ynet added that among the measures are raising VAT and health taxes, implementing a substantial tax on major Israeli banks, as well as introducing significant budget cuts.
According to the website, in their forthcoming report, Fitch economists are anticipated to caution against a noticeable increase in the Israeli occupation entity's debt-GDP ratio, rising from 59% to 68%, attributed to heightened security expenditures stemming from the war.
Elsewhere, Ynet mentioned that the third-largest rating agency, S&P Global Ratings, is set to follow Fitch's steps and release an unfavorable report on "Israel's" economy in the upcoming weeks and may consider downgrading the entity's credit rating as well.
